I'm looking to study psychology at a Russell Group university, but I've regretfully never worked as hard as I could have in school.
I've got 7 GCSEs (5 Bs and 2 Cs) and I'm redoing year 12 after failing my exams due to issues with anxiety. As a result of this, I was limited to studying RE, Sociology and English Literature, but I've begun working hard and so far its all going much better than last year. And so, I was wondering what my chances of getting into a Russell Group uni are ? I really like the look of Warwick and Bristol's courses but I notice that they prefer a science subject at A-level which I very sadly cant do. Does this completely exclude me from being given an offer from such uni's ? Or do I have a chance if I get some really good A-levels and write a great personal statement to go with ? I feel like I've never been mature enough to take school seriously until recently and I want to prove to myself that, regardless of my past failures, I am capable of performing to a high standard.

(Original post by Elon_Muskrat)
I'm looking to study psychology at a Russell Group university, but I've regretfully never worked as hard as I could have in school.
I've got 7 GCSEs (5 Bs and 2 Cs) and I'm redoing year 12 after failing my exams due to issues with anxiety. As a result of this, I was limited to studying RE, Sociology and English Literature, but I've begun working hard and so far its all going much better than last year. And so, I was wondering what my chances of getting into a Russell Group uni are ? I really like the look of Warwick and Bristol's courses but I notice that they prefer a science subject at A-level which I very sadly cant do. Does this completely exclude me from being given an offer from such uni's ? Or do I have a chance if I get some really good A-levels and write a great personal statement to go with ? I feel like I've never been mature enough to take school seriously until recently and I want to prove to myself that, regardless of my past failures, I am capable of performing to a high standard.

With your profile, I think you will struggle to get offers from good* universities. You can still apply this year to see what offers you get, but your best plan might be to work extremely hard to get the best A-level grades you can and then apply during a gap year. The lack of a science A-level will also be a handicap, so consider doing one privately if you take a year out.

* Not all 'good' universities are in the Russell group. Two of the CUG's four top-rated unis for psychology are not in the RG.